Lemken’s electronic ISOBUS-controlled plough is a sign of the company’s continued drive to embrace new technology. It claims that ISOBUS can make a novice plougher look like a “professional”.

The plough can control your depth and restrict the width of the sod – all from the comfort of the cab. So, on a cold day in January, the driver can stay in the warmth of the seat and leave the toolbox shut.

Looking further down the proverbial road, this plough might even be coupled to a driverless tractor.

Derek Delahunty is Lemken’s area sales manager for Ireland. His enthusiasm for new technology shines through when describing this plough – namely the Juwel TCP. In his own words, it’s not about ploughing in straight lines but is about finishing a field with two headlands instead of three.

“You’ll get the typical situation where a farmer will come in and say – why would I want to buy that plough? I’ve been ploughing straight all of my life – but it’s not about ploughing straight. It’s about going into a three-corner field and mapping where you want to end.

“As you come across the field, instead of going in straight lines there might need to be crooked lines.

It’s about finishing a field with no short ground. There’s a lot more to it than setting an ‘AB’ line. Anyone can do that.

Lemken

Delahunty told AgriLand that he is not expecting every tillage farmer in Ireland to go out and buy an ‘electronic’ plough. He knows this is only for a small few, that are embracing the current technology. He does see it as the future; he also sees it helping where farmers are under pressure.

“I’m not going to push people but there are customers out there that are looking for this sort of technology. The person that’s going to buy this is going to embrace technology.”

He also says that this plough can be a solution on a large farm where labour is in short supply.

There are less and less people out there to do these jobs now; people want more efficient machinery. If you take the likes of Lemken’s ISOBUS-controlled plough – it’s a very, very efficient machine.

“It allows the operator time to breath inside in the cab. There are people out there now who are ploughing far more than what was being done in the past, by two or even three people. All of the work now has to be done by just one person.

“Just look at the scenario that’s out there now; Case IH and Fendt have driverless tractors. These tractors are going to need machinery. If machinery manufacturers, like Lemken, don’t develop this machinery what are these tractors going to do?”

Lemken

Touch of a button

Lemken’s ISOBUS-controlled plough can adjust working depth and width from the cab. The driver can save different settings and change these at the touch of a button.

“The plough can have four different settings saved into the background. Setting number one, for example, could be a farmer’s normal, run-of-the-mill, everyday ploughing.

“When it comes to finishing the headlands, because the plough is fully controlled by electronics, it means they can manipulate the plough angle [from the cab] to finish out the field – without leaving any deep furrows.

There won’t be a big furrow left when ploughing from the ditch back into the field, because the operator can save a setting whereby the wheel goes down fully and the body pitches over.

“When it comes to ploughing the headland, the operator can hit button number two, for example, and the plough will assume the required position.

“The big advantage is that where you have one person to do the work or where you have someone who doesn’t have the experience, the farm manager can set up everything on the plough. The operator can then literally go to the field, press button number one and keep turning the plough on the headland.

Part of a concept

“I suppose the ISOBUS-controlled plough is not for everybody. It’s part of a whole concept. It doesn’t make sense for someone to go out and buy one who doesn’t have any other ISOBUS machines in their system.

“It’s down to the amount of ploughing that you’re going to do and the value for money that you’re going to get back out of it.”

Lemken